$195,226 star pinpoints “recency bias” as sole reason behind Caitlin Clark’s Fever sneaking past the Storm in latest rankings

Seattle Storm guard Lexie Brown voiced her feelings on Caitlin Clark and Co.’s rapid ascent past the Storm in the WNBA’s latest power rankings. Both teams are neck and neck in the standings. The Storm (15-11) have done well, holding the No. 5 place in the standings. Meanwhile, the Indiana Fever (13-12) are No. 6, trailing Seattle by a game and a half.

Speaking on Thursday’s episode of the "Full Circle" podcast with Mariah Rose, Brown said that the Fever’s power ranking can be attributed to “recency bias.”

“I will say, I looked at the power rankings today and they put the Fever above us," Brown said. "And I’m going to only say that it’s recency bias because they came into Seattle and smacked us. That’s why they snuck them above us in the power rankings.”

Brown repeated the rankings and didn’t seem to agree with the Fever being placed above Seattle.

“Right now, I think it’s Minnesota, New York, Phoenix, Indiana, us… Very much recency bias, won the Commissioner’s cup.”

Podcast host Mariah Rose doubled down on Brown’s views and noted the Fever’s most recent achievements, including winning the Commissioner’s Cup without Caitlin Clark and defeating the Seattle Storm at home.

Lexie Brown signed a two-year, $195,226 deal with the LA Sparks ahead of the 2025 season. She was eventually traded to the Seattle Storm, where she has struggled, averaging just 2.1 points this season.

Indiana took down the Storm, 94-86, in their first meeting of the regular season on June 24. Aliyah Boston led the way for the Fever, finishing with 31 points and eight rebounds. Caitlin Clark struggled, recording six points and nine assists, shooting 3-for-13 with eight turnovers.

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Is Caitlin Clark and Co.’s power ranking due to “recency bias,” or have they been outperforming the Seattle Storm?

Lexie Brown says that the Indiana Fever’s recent power ranking climb past the Storm can be attributed to recency bias. However, both teams have maintained similar records since their meeting on June 24.

The Fever have played and won seven of their 12 games, including their Commissioner’s Cup win against the Minnesota Lynx. Meanwhile, the Storm have won six games over that stretch. What’s worth noting about Indiana’s run is that Caitlin Clark has missed eight of those 12 games.

Despite being without its best player, the team has managed to stay afloat, thanks to some solid effort from Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard. Mitchell leads the team in scoring, averaging 19.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

Edited by nagpaltusharn25